Road Commission for Oakland County hires 30 part-time workers to help shrinking staff

An Oakland County Road Commission snow plow blasts its way through the snow along Baldwin Road in Orion Township. The Road Commission has hired 30 part-time workers to help its staff. The Oakland Press file photo

The Road Commission for Oakland County is reviewing winter plowing and salting procedures with its truck drivers, preparing its trucks for winter and getting snowplows ready for the arrival of winter conditions.

The agency also is trying out new approaches to winter road maintenance. It has hired 30 part-time, temporary snowplow and salt truck drivers to augment a shrinking full-time staff and has purchased new pieces of equipment that will improve winter road maintenance efficiency.

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"For the first time ever, we have hired temporary, part-time employees to augment our full-time drivers," said RCOC Chairman Eric Wilson. "Our full-time staff numbers have dropped so much in recent years that we simply didn't have enough staff to provide the level of service the public deserves. This is a cost-effective way to maintain that level of service."

Wilson said the agency also has brought back four retired plow drivers on a part-time basis.

The Road Commission has reduced staff by more than 28 percent overall and almost 35 percent within the Highway Maintenance Department within the past five years as a result of continued reductions in state-collected road funding.

The new equipment, known as multi-functional spreaders, slide into the back of dump trucks used for salting and plowing. The spreaders provide the capability to distribute salt over three road lanes at one time while also more efficiently mixing liquid brine (salt water) with rock salt that improves the efficiency of the salting operation and reduces the amount of salt needed. The spreaders also have the capability to spray liquid brine alone.

The agency was able to purchase five bulk spreader units with some of the money left over as a result of the mild winter last year, Wilson said.

While the addition of the temporary, part-time workers and retirees should help to alleviate the strain caused by staff reductions, it does not address RCOC's other major challenge this winter: aging equipment.

"We have more than a $20 million equipment deficit," said RCOC Vice Chairman Greg Jamian.

That's the dollar value of RCOC equipment, mostly in the form of the large trucks used for salting and plowing, that should be replaced immediately, but which the agency cannot currently afford to replace, Jamian said.

"Many of our trucks have reached or exceeded the point where they should be replaced. That means many are going to break down more often this winter than in the past," Jamian said. "And when they break down, it will frequently take longer to fix because the problems will be more severe."

Jamian also said RCOC mechanics have inspected all trucks in an effort to prevent breakdowns and will continue to do their best to keep the trucks on the road, thus buying time until there is an increase in road funding and the agency can buy new trucks.

"Our primary source of operating funds -- the state gas tax and vehicle-registration fees -- fell for the last five years in a row," said RCOC Board member Ron Fowkes. "Those five years of decline followed nearly 10 years of virtually flat revenues. We'll receive less funding in the current fiscal year than we received in 2000."

As a result, the RCOC has been making cuts and finding ways to operate more efficiently.

Officials said that the only way to achieve the level of savings needed to balance the budget is to reduce staff. So far, the commission has been able to avoid layoffs by not replacing employees as they leave or retire. The agency has 157 fewer employees than in 2007.

Despite the addition of the part-time, temporary employees and retirees, Jamian said that motorists must be vigilant when driving during or immediately after winter storms.

"It's critical that motorists be aware of the road conditions and drive appropriately for those conditions. We will be out salting and plowing whenever it snows, but that doesn't mean there won't be any icy or snow-covered areas."

FYI: For more information on the Road Commission for Oakland County visit their website at www.rcocweb.org.